A large man took a bite of a large, ripe cherry as he sat on a metal bench, watching people walk by with a bored look. "Okay, here's something you definitely won't get, kid. Who do you think… Unironically watches soap operas?"
He turned to a small girl next to him, who was munching on her own cherry, cocked an eyebrow and looked up at him. "M. Bison, a-doi. He's a total softie when he isn't all 'murder happy psychic dictator'. Plus, he keeps being all chummy with Chun Lee, so there's that."
The larger man snorted, using his free hand to ruffle the little girl's hair. "Right you are, you little crumb muncher. I was pretty surprised when Zangief told me."
The little girl with candy in her hair sprung up onto her feet. "Of course you were, Stinkbrain. You barely ever think to just ask people this stuff. C'mon, you're always so nosy."
"You're projecting, kid", the man shot back with a laugh.
The girl huffed and sat back down, looking to the side with a sour pout. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. Not my fault Taffyta's rubbing off onto me."
The man rolled his eyes good naturedly, and nudged the girl. "I'm just teasing ya', Vanny."
Vanellope snorted lightly and flashed the man a grin. "It was kinda obvious, Ralph."
The two arcade denizens returned to their simple guessing game as the more people flooded out of their games to enjoy their night. As more people flooded in, Ralph's smile grew more and more as his mind flashed back to six years ago. Feared and a taboo, living alone in the garbage of Niceland with no friends. Now he had not only finally made a best friend, but also a family and place within Litwack's.
People would smile and greet him rather than run away and hide. He was a frequent member of the weekly Bad-Anon, even getting a chance to host it every so often. And he had an actual home, a little shack in front of the massive brick pile that was just exactly what he wanted.
Vanellope, too, had her life change so much over the last six years. Once a glitch that everyone in Sugar Rush feared, she had finally reclaimed her title of princess (and promptly changed it to president), had become friends to all the racers, and even fulfilled her dream of being a playable racer.
Not to mention their shared secret of a second, chaotic family they became a part of a while back, all thanks to a kid and sword who got lost.
Litwack's itself shifted with the event. Ralph's escapade into Hero's Duty and Sugar Rush was well known all throughout. While he was chastised for nearly going 'Turbo', the fact he saved a whole game and stopped the original Turbo, it kinda balanced out in the end.
Ralph was knocked out of his musings when Vanellope suddenly stood up, smacking his arm with her finished cherry's stem. "C'mon Ham Hands, let's head to Tappers. Root Beers are on me!"
"Alright, alright, hang on kid", the wrecker said with a laugh. He finished the rest of his cherry hastily, then stood up and followed the energetic twelve year old towards the entrance of the ever popular root beer bar. They both tossed the cherry stems into a trash can before heading under the gate and along their way towards the train. It was loading up with characters, but luckily they were able to squeeze in at one end.
Once filled, the train automatically glided through the power cord, electricity sparking and arcing along the copper wiring. Vanellope rested on her usual spot on Ralph's shoulder, lazily looking towards the top of the wire.
"You ever wonder if Litwack's will get a new game, chumbo?" The racer asked absentmindedly.
The wrecker shrugged, making sure he didn't knock his friend down. "Who knows. Not a lot of companies really make arcade cabinets all that much any more, from what I've heard. A lot of players say Litwack's is a pretty rare sight."
"That explains a lot, yeah, but I wanna know if we could ever get another game. New friends, new places to explore, all of that."
"I wish I could know too, kid." He shot the girl a grin. "But I guess we'll just have to wait and see."
Vanellope rolled her eyes with a smile. "Yeah yeah, grin at me all ya' want. Just wait, the next game will be Donkey Kong, and you'll get folded by a big ape."
Ralph laughed at the jab as the train pulled into the other end, informing the occupants to hop off. Ralph did just that, allowing some of the cowboy customers to hop on and take the train to Game Central Station.
Luckily, not everyone came to drink, so that gave the wrecker and racer duo enough time to snag a space at one of the four bars.
The moustached bartender, the aptly named Tapper, coasted up and down, sliding filled cups down to the awaiting customers, making idle chit-chat as he worked. After giving them their orders, he came up to Ralph.
"Nice to see ya' back, Ralph", the bartender said in a jolly tone. "And you too, Vanellope. I'm gonna take a wild guess as to what ya' need."
"You know us too well, Tapper. Two root beers, the kid's paying", The wrecker said with a smile. Tapper nodded and quickly fulfilled his request, sliding two glasses of the fizzy, bubbly drink towards the duo. They each caught their drink, and clinked them together.
As Vanellope took a big first sip, Ralph let his smile grow. "Hey, kid, I wanna tell ya' something."
The racer stopped and looked up at the man. "And that's that, Ralph?"
"Today… Or tomorrow, either of the two, marks it down that we met six years ago."
Vanellope's eyes widened. "Wow, it's been that long? Crazy to think, I still feel like that was just a week ago."
The wrecker snorted. "Same here, but time flies. Anyway, because of this special time, I have a load of stuff planned for the next few evenings. I want it to be a surprise, so no spoilers."
Vanellope's eyes lit up, and she did little bounces on her stool. "You tease! You always know how to get me all hyped up!"
"Consider it a special skill", the wrecker tapped his forehead, and took a swig of his drink. He took a breath after, and sniffed. "Trust me kid, you'll love it."
"You haven't ever steered me wrong before, so I trust ya', Stinkbrain."
The duo of friends shared a smile and returned to their drinks, occasionally sparking up idle chatter with themselves, sometimes letting Tapper or the other bar patrons chime in if the conversation felt like it. After they were done with their drinks, Vanellope paid for the drinks and the duo left.
They boarded the train and rode it back to Game Central Station, which at this point was filled to the brim with a variety of characters. Such a transport hot spot made it the most crowded place in the arcade after hours, which did make it overwhelming to most denizens, but it was part of the charm.
As Vanellope and Ralph weaved through the crowd, they discussed what the plan was for this evening.
"So, first, I thought about us heading to Tron and messing around there for a bit", Ralph said as he slid past Pong.
"Wait… But doesn't Tron have that bug?" The racer asked in confusion, zipping onto a nearby bench. "Did they fix it?"
"Not yet, no. But I actually asked Tron himself a few days back and he'll set up markers to help us avoid that area."
Vanellope shrugged. "Whatever you say, chumbo." she gained a devilish smirk and suddenly did a glitch/jump combo and pinched Ralph's nose. "Race ya' there!" Before the wrecker could react, Vanellope started glitching about, weaving between arcade denizens seamlessly. Some jumped in shock at her sudden appearance and disappearance.
Ralph watched her dash off with his hands on his hips, releasing a quiet chuckle with the shake of his head. Always the reckless but spunky little ball of energy.
He began to follow after the racer, but he stopped when he spotted someone else running up to him, the unmissable blue uniform and golden hammer making this certain someone stand out amongst the crowd.
"Ralph!" It was none other than Fix-It Felix himself, squeezing through the crowd to try and reach his self-proclaimed brother. "I've been looking everywhere for you!"
"Uhhhhh, hey Felix… What's the occasion?" The wrecker leaned against a nearby kiosk. "Me and the kid were heading off to Tron."
"I just need to talk, don't you worry. I wanted to ask if you and Vanny would be up tagging along with me and Tamora tomorrow. We were planning on heading down Just Dance."
The wrecker's face brightened, and a smile snapped onto his face. "Felix, that would be awesome! Of course we'd tag along!"
"Great! I'll see ya' then!" The handyman turned and ran towards the entrance of Hero's Duty, probably to mingle with his wife. Or blast some Cybugs.
Ralph honestly was kinda freaked out at how easy it was for Felix to pick up one of those crazy guns and unload a whole clip with ease.
Shaking his head, he resumed his original task and made his way towards the entrance gate of Tron. When he walked under the golden arch, Vanellope rounded the corner with her arms crossed, giving her friend a pointed look.
"What took you so long?"
Ralph rolled his eyes. "One, I'm not as nimble as you. Two, I'm bigger. Three, Felix bumped into me and asked if me and you would want to join him and Calhoun at Just Dance."
That made the racer perk up instantly. "Really?! Well then heck yes we're tagging along! Now, onwards to Tron!"
The wrecker and racer boarded the high-tech bullet train, which was unsurprisingly empty, and made their way towards their destination.
~X~
Tron was fun, although with the cut off portion of the game it did make their race pretty cumbersome. Still, the duo had fun, and now found themselves in the empty stadium of Madden Football. Ralph lazily tossed a football up into the air and caught it while he and Vanellope lazed on the astroturf.
"Have you ever thought about how we're just zeros and ones floating around in the universe like tiny specks of dust", the racer said in a wistful and sad tone. "Has that ever made you wonder if there's more to our life at all."
"I know there is, kid", Ralph said confidently. "If you asked me this before everything that brought us together, then I'd say definitely. But now, not only do we have each other, but a crazy bunch of weirdos like us that we can call family."
He paused as he gained a more sombre look. "Although I do still think about it. How small we are. All those worlds, all those faces and rules… It always makes me wonder how far it really goes."
Vanellope frowned and sat up, shooting her friend a guilty look. "Sorry about bringing this up, Ralph. I guess I've just been thinking about stuff…"
The wrecker caught the football and sat up, resting his free hand on Vanny's back. "Hey, it's all cool kid. It can be scary, but remember I'm always here if ya' need to talk. I've been kicking for 30 years, and I've seen a lot of games come and go. It's a lot to handle, but you aren't alone."
"Thanks, pal…" The little girl shot the mountain man with a grateful smile. "Now c'mon, I wanna go and watch the sunrise!"
"Hang on, watch this." Vanellope watched Ralph in anticipation as he tossed the football up one last time and punched it through one of the goal posts. A horn sounded off and the wrecker raised his hands in victory. "Touchdown!"
"Now can we co", the girl said with a giggle.
"Yeah." The duo left the stadium and made their way down towards the stadium's train station, which had a few vendors idling about getting ready for the arcade to open. Ralph waved a friendly hello to most of them, and got ones in return.
They both boarded the train, and soon enough it was off. Vanellope hummed a little diddy to herself, which caught the attention of the wrecker.
"Whatcha' humming there, kid?"
The racer blinked and looked up at her friend, simply shrugging. "Just some little melody from a song Caleb showed me. I think it's the same song he made our ringtone…"
"Well I'm not quite sure what that would be, I changed mine when she showed me how."
Vanny snorted, and resumed her humming. Only this time she added in a bit of lyrics this time around.
"The black magic on Malholland Drive~", the candy president softly sang out. "Swimming pools under desert skies~"
Ralph leaned back and closed his eyes, letting Vanellope's singing soothe him. A smile slowly grew on his face as the song continued, and in his mind he could imagine the instrumental of the song that meant so much to all of them…
~
Ralph was joined by a few of the others as they all entered the Rec Room, only to pause when they all heard a song playing out softly over the surround sound. Looking towards the centre of the room, they saw the bespectacled boy in some baggy clothes singing along loudly as Gladius hovered overhead.
"Oh, the neon coast was your sign~", Caleb sang out, the softer way he did it clashing with the almost pop/rock way of the actual song. "And the Midwest wind with Pisces rising… Wouldn't change ya', oh. Wouldn't try to make you leave, no~"
Next to Ralph's left, the teenage robot Jenny tilted her head with a soft smile, and to his right Steve began to bob his head lightly to the beat.
Caleb spun around, and fell silent when he finally noticed his audience. His face exploded into a bright blush of embarrassment, which only got worse when Gladius chuckled.
"Gotta say, Caleb", Jenny said as she walked up and sat on a nearby couch. "I'm always caught off guard when you decide to just let your singing chops loose."
"Hehehe… Yeah…" The boy sat down next to her with a shy smile. "I just like to sing. But stage fright makes it hard to do it in front of a crowd."
"I feel ya', kid." Ralph sat down on another couch, joined by a peppy Steve shortly after. "Although, I have to ask… Why this song?" At Caleb's confused look, he elaborated. "Whenever we catch you singing, it's always to this song. What was it… LA Devotee , that's right."
The boy shrugged. "It's just a really special song to me. It's my favourite one ever, and… Fredrick loved it a lot…"
The mood shifted when he said that, and everyone gained a concerned look. But, surprisingly, Caleb had a wistful smile on his face. "Whenever he got a chance, Fredrick would listen to this song. He told me it was just the song that 'clicked' for him. And when I was on my own, it clicked for me too. It feels like my theme .
"Not literally, of course, but it feels like that."
"Huh, that's cool, Caleb", Steve said quietly, clearly worried any amount of volume could set the boy off. "I feel like that too with… a couple of the tracks from my game. Namely Sweden , that feels like my song."
"It helps when you have a song named after you or made for you specifically", Jenny said. She and Ralph shared a smirk, which made the boy giggle.
"Okay, yeah, but how about we stop being all down and find something to do!"
The five friends ran off to spend their time the way they wanted.
~
Ralph was snapped out of his thoughts when the train came to a stop, jostling him just enough to knock him free of his stupor. With a stretch, he followed Vanellope off the train and into Game Central, the two of them making their way to the empty bench that faced the unused outlet. Early morning sunlight shone through, blanketing the duo in its warmth.
"So, after Just Dance tomorrow, what else you got planned?" The racer asked in excitement.
The wrecker laughed and shrugged. "You'll just have to wait and see, Impatient President."
Vanellope let out an over dramatic gasp. "Impatient President. I'm both offended and impressed that you came up with that."
"What can I say, I'm just that good…" The duo let out a series of light giggles, only to fall silent when the light from the outlet vanished. "Hey, where'd our sunlight go?"
Ralph stood up in confusion, setting a curious Vanellope on his shoulder and gazing at now darkened out holes. When they started to assume the worst, the small red lights next to the destination board blinked.
Vanellope gasped in excitement. "Litwack's plugging in something new!" She shot the wrecker with a smug look. "And you said he wouldn't."
"So I'm wrong sometimes, sue me."
"Give me a week, I'll come up with something."
The wrecker let out a laugh as he made his way through the crowd that was slowly growing, everyone in the arcade whispering in anticipation. They all made way for Ralph, the wrecker apologising and putting his excellent manners to good use. At the front of the pack was Felix, Sergeant Calhoun and Sonic, which Ralph quickly squeezed between.
"Hey Felix, Calhoun!" The wrecker greeted. "What's getting plugged in?"
"Well, Ralph, Sonic thinks it's gonna be a new pinball machine", the handyman said, which made the wrecker and racer duo simultaneously nod. He then looked up at his wife with a loving look. "What do you think, lady love?"
"I'll bet a shiny nickel it's a blood pressure machine", she said bluntly, although the ghost of a smile graced her lips. "Kids love those things."
"Mmmhmmm", Ralph hummed in thought. Everything fell silent when a soft but attentive alarm sounded off, letting everyone know to stand back and wait for the plug-in to finish.
Vanellope scrunched up on her perch on Ralph's shoulder, muttering "Please be a racing game", quietly over and over. Ralph shot her a confused look, before looking back up at the gate as the plug clicked into place. After a second of nothing, the words 'WIFI' showed up on the red LED screen.
"Whiffee?" Ralph said in confusion. "Or Wifey? I don't know why, but that sounds… familiar…" he made sure to mumble that last part, making sure only Vanellope heard.
"So… Either wiffle ball or a game about arranged marriage?" Vanellope asked out loud in befuddlement.
"It's actually pronounced 'Wi-Fi', Ralph", Sonic spoke up matter-of-factly.
"Wi-Fi…" The wrecker repeated, trying to jog his memory.
"And Wi-Fi", the speedy hedgehog continued, "is the Internet! Which is an online community where human beings go to shop, play games and socialise!"
Ralph and Vanellope shared a look, eyes wide as they remembered what Caleb told them not too long after they got their phones
"The internet is basically everything you need right at your fingertips. But it does have a very, very dangerous underbelly. So be careful where you go snooping, otherwise you'll see some, and pardon my language, fucked up stuff."
The wrecker shivered as the ominous warning flashed in his again a few more times, while the racer seemed more innocently curious. Even with their secret cell phones, they never really used the internet much unless it was texting the others or hooking up Ralph's phone to his small TV to have a movie night.
Otherwise, the duo had no experience with the internet whatsoever.
"Still, it could be fun", Vanny said with a smile.
It fell the moment Surge blinked in front of the gate. "No, it definitely won't be." Ralph rolled his eyes as the annoying security officer pointed at the LED screen. "That sign up there says 'WiFi', but what it should say is 'Die-Fi'." The crowd shot him with flat looks. "That's a little humour there, but seriously the Internet is nothing to laugh at."
The officer pulled out a thing of caution tape and stuck one end to one side of the gate's arch. "It is new, it is different, and therefore we should fear it."
Ralph and Calhoun shared a look, with the wrecker mouthing a silent "What???" and the sergeant shrugged in return.
"So keep out, for Pete's sake, and get to work. The arcade's about to open."
The crowd began to disperse, either in annoyance or boredom, and all headed back to their games. Ralph and Vanellope lingered at the new gate, looking off into the somewhat ominous darkness.
"Of course, the moment something new gets plugged in", the racer said dejectedly as she walked over and lifted the tape lightly. "We aren't allowed to go in!"
"I just don't get what Surge is on", the wrecker mumbled quietly. "'We should fear it'. Where did that come from? If he treated every new plug-in like that, then Game Central would be a ghost town." He knelt down and ruffled the spunky girl's ponytail. "How about this: Since the arcade is closed for thanksgiving weekend, me and you will head in and check out. K?"
Vanellope perked up a bit, but still looked a bit down. "Yeah, that sounds fun. See ya' after work, Stinkbrain?"
"You know it, kid. Top shelf?" He held up his fist.
"Top shelf!" The racer did a little hop and fist bumped her friend, before waving goodbye and zipping into Sugar Rush's gate.
When she was gone, Ralph sighed, glancing up at the gate one last time. He could nail the feeling, but something definitely made him feel off about this. It was almost like a warning or omen, with how oddly timed the router getting plugged in was.
The wrecker shook his head and began to make his way to Fix-It Felix's gate, his mind wondering why this felt too… Too convenient.
~X~
It was a fairly okay day at work. The arcade wasn't too busy, but not empty. Kids meandered about, playing any game that caught their fancy with their hard earned quarters, smiles bright and eyes sparkling. Mr.Litwack himself was at the counter, talking with the nice young lady he hired to be in charge of prize exchange.
Ralph could see all of this from the top of the Niceland apartment complex as he attempted to best another player, Felix jumping and flicking in time with their joystick movements. The wrecker knew these motions and movements by heart, so he let his eyes wander to Sugar Rush. The twin racing cabinets were still as popular as ever, with Vanellope at the for-front of it.
Ralph always made sure things were okay with the other games, especially since there was a scare two years back, where during peak hours, the second screen on Sugar Rush just blinked out for no reason. While one cabinet worked, the other's screen had died, something about faulty wiring.
During that week's Bad-Anon, Eggman said he overheard Litwack talking with a technician just before the arcade closed: The repairs were simple, but far too expensive for how much the old man made. Thus, the second screen was never repaired. To this day, it still has that ominous 'Sorry, Out Of Order' paper taped to it, which was definitely a big scare for everyone in the candy-coated kingdom.
Vanellope held her head high, but when she was alone with Ralph, she shared how seeing that happen scared her so badly she nearly crashed mid game. Luckily, she controlled herself and finished the race, doing a headcount after the players finished.
It only got worse when they went to the Capital the day after. How everyone lost their minds at that.
It was an eye-opener for Ralph. So he's been sure to keep an eye on his friend's cabinet so he could jump into action if things ever went south fast.
When the player pumped their fist and walked off, Ralph picked himself up from the mud puddle and ruffled his hair. "And that's already ten today. Jeez, work's gonna be rough today, huh?"
"I feel ya', brother", Felix said as he scaled down the fire escape, already looking pretty exhausted. "This is probably the most activity I've seen in a long time."
"Considering the arcade will be closed for a few days, it makes sense."
The handyman nodded, spinning his hammer in his hand. He always did this as a way to quell nervousness. "I just hope the lunch rush isn't as bad as this."
"You two better get ready, then", one of the nicelanders said from a window above. "Quarter alert."
The wrecker rolled his eyes and went to go and get into position, already wanting work to be over with.
~X~
Ralph sighed as the arcade finally closed for the day. It was packed, and the lunch rush, just as Felix feared, was a rush of kids of all ages. Even some parents and miscellaneous adults decided to get in on the action to relive their childhoods.
Luckily, for the last three-ish hours of opening, his game saw basically no use, which gave everyone a much needed break. Especially the wrecker himself, whose hands were getting numb from all the brick-breaking and window smashing he had. So right now, as the arcade emptied, Ralph relaxed in his tree stump. While he did have a shack of his own, he still used his stump when he wanted to look up and gaze at Niceland's starry, forever night sky.
With a big stretch, he stood up when the announcement of the closed arcade echoed throughout the building, and the wrecker made his way towards the train to Game Central. He waved a polite "Good evening" at Q-Bert, who also was absolutely exhausted from the player rush earlier.
The wrecker sat down in his game's little dinky train and enjoyed the slow trip as much as he could. It was gonna be Random Roster Race time in Sugar Rush, and Ralph wanted to get there to watch before it kicked off.
The mountain man slowly made his way through the crowded transport hub, slowly getting his energy back, until he glanced at the entrance of the WiFi router. He pursed his lips as some odd feeling of dread welled up inside of him. But as he approached Sugar Rush's gate, he buried it and hopped onto the candy train.
Once he stepped out onto the rainbow candy bridge, he had finally returned to a normal state of mind. The sweet air, while overwhelming for some people, was commonplace for Ralph. So, with a big smile and blood pumping through his veins, he made his way towards the Royal Raceway. Already, even at the base of the bridge, he could hear the cheers of the audience, so he made his way over as fast as he could.
He rounded around Vanellope's personal box, and smiled when he saw all the racers at the ready, Vanellope amongst them.
"There ya' are, Ralph!" The candy president cheered. She glitched over and stopped in front of him. "I was wondering if you'd show up or not. Today had a lot of people!"
"Yeah, Felix and I worked to the bone before lunch." The wrecker breathed a sigh of relief, but then smiled. "But it wasn't enough to keep me from watching ya' win another race!"
"You know it, chumbo!"
"I don't even know if I want to race today", fellow racer Rancis whined. "My hands are cramping up so much!"
"Without the second screen, we have to work twice as hard", Taffyta spat in a combo of exhaustion and annoyance. "So suck it up, Fluggerbutter."
"Actually, speaking of players", Adorabeezle mentioned. "Did any of you see that weird kid that was giving our game that weird look?"
"Yeah, I saw him too", Gloyd mentioned.
"Weird kid?" Ralph mentioned out loud. "I didn't see him…"
"He was hanging around the corner", Sticky explained. "So you wouldn't have seen him. But most of us did, and I don't know, it made me feel weird."
"How come?" Vanellope asked in confusion, with herself, Taffyta, Rancis and Candlehead being the only ones who didn't notice.
"It was this… Look, I don't know how to describe it. But I guess it's what would happen if Ralph was really mad. Like he wanted to break something."
"Well that's not ominous at all", Snowanna mumbled, making Jubileena next to her nod with pursed lips.
Ralph hummed, then stood up. "Well, just be wary. Tomorrow is the last day before Thanksgiving weekend, so if he tries anything, be ready."
"So you're saying he could wreck the game and force us to evacuate…" Minty whispered fearfully.
The wrecker shook his head. "I can't say that, Litwack wouldn't let that happen. Just be cautious, is all I'm saying."
"Yeah, don't get your candies all in a twist", Vanellope chided. "We've been fine so far, so let's not start bellyaching and do this race! C'mon guys!"
All the racers relaxed just enough to follow their president to their karts. Ralph smiled and made his way up to watch the race from Vanellope's spot with Sour Bell. Only, there was a nagging feeling in the back of his head. One that wouldn't shut up even as the karts' engines roared.
One that made him think that the WiFi router was far too convenient…
~X~
And here we are, the first chapter of WorldWide Wreck-It! If you couldn't tell, this is a Ralph Breaks The Internet rewrite that recontextualizes the plot of the movie to be more in line with the first Wreck-It Ralph, while also making sure everything in Dreams Come True keeps it grounded.
Unlike This Is Your Captain Crashing, this'll be a more semi-freeform retelling, since while I do like parts of the movie, the overall execution is sloppy and pretty bad, especially with Ralph and Vanellope's characterization. So expect an overhaul that is more in line with my style of writing.
but anyway, this first chapter is for laying the groundwork of what's to come, so be ready for anything!
Up next: A fun night of dancing, root beer and friendship helps with the eventual whiplash the morning brings…
~Caleb~